Mbarara, Uganda — 13 August 2026
The Greater Virunga Transboundary Collaboration (GVTC) has facilitated a high-level Cross-Border Surveillance Coordination Meeting between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), bringing together health, laboratory, wildlife, veterinary, and environmental experts to strengthen regional health security within the Greater Virunga Landscape. The meeting was held at Las Vegas Hotel in Mbarara.
Convened under the theme “Strengthening Cross-Border Disease Surveillance, Information Sharing, and Laboratory Collaboration within the Greater Virunga Landscape,” the meeting addressed the growing risks posed by emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases affecting communities, wildlife, and livestock across the Uganda-DRC border.
Key delivery partners in attendance included the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Gorilla Doctors, and the International Gorilla Conservation Programme (IGCP), alongside representatives of the implementing entities — the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
High-Level Representation
Uganda’s delegation was led by Dr. Allan Muruta Niyonzima, Commissioner for Epidemiology and Surveillance in the Ministry of Health. The delegation from North Kivu Province, DRC, was led by Mrs. Prisca Kamala Luanda of the Provincial Ministry of Health. The meeting was facilitated by Dr. Andrew Seguya, Executive Secretary of GVTC, with funding from the World Bank Pandemic Fund under the Strengthening One Health Pandemic Prevention and Preparedness in the Greater Virunga Landscape (SOHPPRGVL) Project.
A Shared, High-Risk Ecosystem
Participants recognized that the Greater Virunga Landscape is a highly interconnected transboundary ecosystem, marked by frequent movement of people, wildlife, livestock, and goods. These interactions heighten the risk of cross-border disease transmission, including Ebola, Marburg, Mpox, Anthrax, Cholera, Yellow Fever, and Rift Valley Fever — underscoring the need for coordinated surveillance, timely information sharing, and stronger laboratory collaboration.
Key Resolutions
The meeting produced several landmark resolutions:
- Establishment of the Greater Virunga Surveillance Landscape as a coordinated cross-border surveillance zone
- Designation of surveillance focal persons at all levels
- Creation of mechanisms for the rapid sharing of public health alerts
- Strengthening of joint outbreak investigations
- Development of procedures for the cross-border movement of human and wildlife samples
- Implementation of a shared communication platform for routine and emergency information exchange
Participants also agreed to develop a Joint Uganda-DRC Greater Virunga Surveillance Action Plan (2026–2028), guided by a One Health approach that integrates public health, wildlife, veterinary, environmental, and laboratory institutions.
Looking Ahead
This collaboration marks a significant step toward earlier detection of disease threats, more coordinated outbreak response, and stronger protection for both human and wildlife populations in one of Africa’s most important transboundary ecosystems. Through sustained partnership between Uganda, DRC, GVTC, and development partners, the Greater Virunga Landscape is poised to become a model for regional health security and cross-border disease surveillance.
GVTC Executive Secretariat
